Escaped lion spends night in jail cell in South Africa

In this photo taken on Wednesday, March 13, 2019, a darted captured lion is seen in a police cell at the Sutherland, South Africa. (AP Photo)

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A lion that escaped a wildlife park and was captured weeks later spent the night in a South African jail cell, until authorities could send him back to the place he's meant to call home.

Photos taken on Wednesday show the darted lion sprawled out in the cell, surrounded by onlookers.

In this photo taken on Wednesday, March 13, 2019, an officer takes a selfie with a darted captured lion is seen in a police cell at the Sutherland, South Africa. (AP Photo)

One police officer took advantage of the lion's tranquilized state to take a selfie.

The lion had escaped from the Karoo National Park, 40 kilometers (25 miles) far from the area close to Sutherland where he was found.

South Africa's parks service tweeted that the lion had to wait in the cell until a crate arrived for his transport back to the park.